Washington Snow Day Calculator
West of the Cascades, two inches on a steep hill closes Seattle; east of them, Spokane barely notices six. Which Washington are you in? Check with the Washington snow day calculator.
How this Washington snow day calculator scores your district
The score above is built from the live hourly forecast for your ZIP — snowfall, ice risk, temperature, wind and, above all, timing. Washington gets extra weight on two local factors. The first is which side of the Cascades you are on: the Puget Sound lowlands see snow rarely, run small fleets and climb steep hills, so low totals score high there, while eastern districts are scored against a hardier baseline. The second is ice under snow: lowland storms often lay snow over a frozen surface, turning two inches into a genuine bus problem. Your score is therefore a local reading, not a statewide one — the same storm system can honestly score 80% in Seattle and 25% in Spokane.
Why Washington closes schools: rare lowland snow and a hardier east
Washington is two winter states divided by a mountain range. In the Puget Sound lowlands — Seattle, Bellevue, Tacoma, Everett and their suburbs — snow is an event, not a season: it arrives a few times a year at most, fleets are small, hills are steep, and untreated side streets ice quickly under fresh snow. The Cascade foothills, places like North Bend and Enumclaw, catch more snow and close more often. East of the Cascades the climate flips: Spokane, the Tri-Cities and Yakima live with real winters, run practised fleets, and treat as routine the totals that would shut Seattle for a week. Every Washington closure decision is made inside one of these climates — never in the average of them.
How Washington districts decide
- Transportation teams drive the hill routes before dawn, testing the steep streets buses must climb — in the lowlands, the steepest route in the district effectively sets the threshold.
- The superintendent makes the final call with National Weather Service input from the Seattle or Spokane offices, depending on which Washington the district sits in.
- Puget Sound districts usually announce by about 5–6 a.m., or the night before when a storm's track is certain enough to call early.
- Some districts reach for a distinct Washington tool instead of closing: snow routes — limited bus service that keeps buses on treated main roads and skips the hills entirely.
Washington's 180 days, 1,027 hours — and the OSPI emergency waiver
Washington requires a 180-day school year and a district-wide average of 1,027 instructional hours — with 1,000 hours for districts serving only grades K–8. When emergencies close schools anyway, the state does not simply forgive the time. A district may ask the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) for an Emergency School Closure Waiver under WAC 392-129 and RCW 28A.150.290, and the state's OSPI Emergency School Closures guidance sets a demanding test: the waiver comes only after the district shows reasonable effort to make the time back first.
Reasonable effort has a specific meaning in Washington. Before OSPI waives the remainder, a district must in fact make up at least three missed days, use its scheduled vacation and planned closure days, and extend the school year to and through June 14. Only then are further missed days waived. The system is used heavily: in 2024–25, 68 Washington districts applied for emergency closure waivers and 62 were approved, according to OSPI's legislative report.
Two Washingtons: Puget Sound hills and the hardier east
The same two inches mean opposite things in Washington. In the lowlands, snow typically lands on frozen, untreated hillsides served by small plow fleets; buses that cannot climb a neighbourhood hill cannot run the route at all, and districts decide by those steepest streets. Two inches there is not a small storm — it is a transportation failure in miniature. East of the Cascades, districts plow as a routine, drivers are practised, and families expect school to run through ordinary snow; closures wait for genuinely big storms, extreme cold or wind. Neither side is doing winter wrong — they have built different systems for different climates that happen to share a state government and a school calendar law.
How many inches of snow cancels school in Washington?
There is no Washington state threshold — every district decides — and the pattern is the most split in the country. The Seattle metro closes around 2 inches, sometimes on an ice forecast alone. Cascade foothill districts close more often, at totals the lowlands would also respect. Spokane-area districts typically need around 6 or more inches, or extreme cold and wind, before they close. Gorge and foothill ice closes schools at any total, on either side of the mountains.
| What falls | When it lands | Typical call |
|---|---|---|
| Around 2 inches of snow | Overnight, Puget Sound lowlands | Seattle metro closure likely — hills and small fleets decide |
| Ice forecast, little snow | Gorge outflow or foothill freeze | Closure at any total in affected districts |
| Around 6 or more inches | Eastern Washington storm | Spokane-area closure range; lesser totals usually run |
| Moderate snow, foothill districts | North Bend, Enumclaw and similar | Closure more often than the lowland cities below them |
Will there be a snow day in Washington tomorrow?
It is the question this page answers every day. Put your Washington ZIP in the calculator above for tonight's live score at your exact location — or go straight to tomorrow's snow day chances for the morning-by-morning view, today's snow day status if weather is already moving in, and our school closing predictor for district-style closing calls. The full snow day predictor breaks down every factor behind your score.
Checking another state? The same live forecast powers our Oregon snow day calculator and Colorado snow day calculator — or start from the main snow day calculator for any US ZIP or Canadian postal code.
Frequently asked questions
How could schools close when only 2 inches of snow fall?
In the Puget Sound lowlands, easily — and reasonably. Two inches on steep hills, with few plows and ice underneath, is a genuine transportation problem: buses that cannot climb a route cannot run it, and districts decide by their steepest streets. A head of school in Kirkland wrote publicly about learning exactly this lesson after arriving from snow country. The inch count sounds small; the hill it lands on is the real measurement.
How many inches of snow cancels school in Washington?
It depends which Washington. Seattle-area districts close around 2 inches, sometimes on ice alone. Spokane-area districts typically need around 6 or more inches, or extreme cold and wind. Foothill districts close more often than the cities below them, and gorge ice closes schools at any total. There is no state number — the Cascades draw the real line.
How cold does it have to be for school to be cancelled in Washington?
Washington sets no state cold threshold. In the lowlands, cold matters mainly when it turns wet roads to ice under snow — the combination, not the temperature alone, closes schools. In eastern Washington, extreme cold with wind is a genuine standalone trigger, the kind of morning when even practised districts weigh the bus stop against the forecast. Your district's call will track its own climate, not a statewide figure.
Do Washington snow days have to be made up?
At first, yes. Before OSPI grants an Emergency School Closure Waiver, a district must show reasonable effort: make up at least three missed days, use scheduled vacation and planned closure days, and extend the year to and through June 14. Only the remainder is waived. The path is well worn — in 2024–25, 68 districts applied for waivers and 62 were approved.
What are snow routes, and are they the same as a closure?
No — snow routes are Washington's middle option. On a snow-route morning, school runs, but buses stay on treated main roads and skip the hills and side streets; families meet the bus at designated stops instead. Some districts use snow routes instead of closing when the main roads are passable but the neighbourhoods are not.
When do Washington districts announce snow closures?
Puget Sound districts usually announce by about 5–6 a.m., after transportation teams have driven the hill routes before dawn, or the night before when a storm is certain. Eastern districts follow the same early-morning rhythm against a hardier threshold. If your district offers snow routes, the announcement may come as that middle call instead — read it fully before deciding the day is off.
Will there be a snow day in Washington tomorrow?
Enter your ZIP in the Washington snow day calculator above for tonight's live score — and read it against your side of the Cascades. A 70% score in Seattle and a 70% score in Spokane are both serious, but they are built from different storms. Check again at dawn, when the overnight snow is measured fact, and confirm with your district's official announcement before changing plans.
How accurate is the Washington snow day calculator?
It is a live forecast estimate that weights snowfall, ice, temperature and timing for Washington conditions — including the lowland hills and thin fleets that make small totals close big districts. It cannot know your district's waiver position, whether it will run snow routes instead of closing, or the state of one particular hill at 5 a.m. Treat the score as a strong planning signal; the district's announcement remains the decision.